Artists in Lebanon Keep Creating During Conflict

Charbel Samuel Aoun is a working artist in the Middle Eastern nation of Lebanon. As the Israeli military launches a deadly attack against the militant group Hezbollah in his home country, Aoun asks, "Does art still have a place in such a crisis?"

Lebanon has long played an important part in the Arab world's artistic community. It has been a center for arts, music and theater, combining traditional and modern influences.

Now, Lebanese artists are using their work as a way to express the anger and loss they feel after a year-long Israeli offensive that has killed more than 3,200 people, most of them since September.

Aoun's works of art are directly connected to the conflicts Lebanon has seen. In 2013, he began gathering dust from Syrian refugee camps in Lebanon to create a series of paintings before moving on to explore other materials.

Now, he says the darkness and hopelessness of the war and the waste left behind by Israel's intense bombing campaign have renewed his desire to create art from dust.

"You either stop everything or keep going with the little that still has meaning," he said.

Two of his exhibitions have been canceled due to the war. While he once made money from selling art, he now also relies on selling honey from his beehives, which he first set up as a project to create art from beeswax.

"I can no longer rely on the art market," he said.

No demand for art

Exhibition spaces across Beirut have closed in recent months. Their owners told Reuters there is no demand to buy art at this time. Even Lebanon's famous Sursock Museum has stored its collections underground.

Lebanese singer and musician Joy Fayad has also struggled with the emotional cost of the conflict. It has made it difficult for her to perform for months.

"It limited my creativity; it was like I shut down. I couldn't give to others, nor to myself," Fayad, 36, said.

Instead, she threw her energy into songwriting. One line in a new song reads: "You are from the downtrodden people, whose word has been silenced, and by their weapons, you are paying the price with your blood."

She recently began performing again, singing for displaced and refugee children in Lebanon at an event north of Beirut.

"They're changing the atmosphere, having fun after such a difficult period," she said, especially for those who became used to the sound of bombs instead of music.

I'm Andrew Smith.

Emilie Madi and Riham Alkousaa reported this story for Reuters. Jill Robbins adapted it for Learning English.

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exhibition – n. an event at which objects (such as works of art) are put out in a public space for people to look at : a public show of something

beehive – n. a nest for bees

beeswax – n. wax made by bees that is used for making candles and other products

shut down – phrasal verb (informal.) to cause (an opponent) to be unsuccessful, unable to score, or function

downtrodden – adj. without hope because of being treated badly by powerful people, governments, or the like